1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a batch-style or selective-style pet dog washing apparatus implemented by automatic control of a sensor and a driver, and a method for controlling the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
To bath a pet dog at home or a veterinary hospital, the pet dog is generally placed in a bathtub, and then washed and cleaned by the hand of a person. This task is, however, quite inconvenient and time-consuming.
To overcome these problems, there have been recently proposed various pet dog washing apparatuses.
A conventional pet dog washing apparatus performs a pet washing operation by operator""s manual adjustment of the height of a bath floor and by supplying a cleaning liquid and water necessary for washing by means of a timer or according to adjustment for various steps of washing.
However, in the conventional pet dog washing apparatus, the size of a washer must be manually adjusted according to the size of a pet dog to be washed, and the temperature or mixture state of a cleaning liquid and water used for washing the pet dog must be controlled for every step of washing to be.
To solve the above-described problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a pet dog washing apparatus in which various components of the apparatus can be automatically controlled according to the size of a pet dog to be washed, and a method for controlling the same.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a batch-style or selective-style pet dog washing apparatus using logic control for a washing, a driver for a pet dog supporting base and a cleaning liquid/air supplier.
To accomplish the first object of the present invention, there is provided a pet dog washing apparatus including a supporting base for placing a pet dog to be washed thereon and supporting the pet dog, a washer installed in the vicinity of the pet dog, for washing the pet dog by rubbing the same, a component controller for sensing the positions of the pet dog and the washer, adjusting the height of the supporting base according to the size of the pet dog, varying the position of the washer to get close to the pet dog, and actuating the washer, and a cleaning liquid/air supplier for supplying a cleaning liquid and air to the washer.
The pet dog washing apparatus may further include a selection controlling means for independently or simultaneously operating the component controller and/or the cleaning liquid/air supplier.
Also, the pet dog washing apparatus may further include a cover case installed to surround the washer and the supporting base to cover the whole body of the pet dog and constructed openably in the form of an open-top bag
Here, the cover case extending upward from the bottom portion in a dome shape is cut halfway lengthwise to then be cut horizontally at portions closes to the lower end thereof, and the cover case having hinges provided at the lower portions of side walls thereof, and two handles and locking means installed where the halfway cut parts of the cover case contact each other.
Preferably, the bottom surface of the supporting base has a sloped floor unit for draining a cleaning liquid, and a drain pipe is connected to the bottom of the floor unit, thereby easily implementing drainage of the cleaning liquid after completing a washing operation.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the washer includes a plurality of rubbing members for rubbing the pet dog to wash the same, an actuator which drives the plurality of rubbing members close to the pet dog, a frame for supporting the plurality of rubbing members and the actuator, and a moving means for scanning the frame back and forth with respect to the pet dog.
Here, each of the rubbing members may include a sliding arm having a cleaning liquid passage, a rubbing head coupled to an end of the sliding arm by a rotary sealing, and a normal and reverse rotation motor installed on the outer surface of the sliding arm and integrally formed with the rubbing head, the rubbing head including a buffer rubber having cleaning liquid spraying orifices connected to the cleaning liquid passage.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, the component controller may include a position sensor for sensing the size and position of the pet dog and the position of the washer, an analog-to-digital converter and signal amplifier for converting the analog signal sensed by the position sensor into a digital signal, a digital controller for performing an operation with respect to the signal supplied from the analog-to-digital converter and signal amplifier and outputting a control signal, and a digital-to-analog converter for converting the control signal of the digital controller into an analog signal and outputting the same.
Preferably, the position sensor includes a first position sensor for measuring the distance between the rubbing members getting closer to the pet dog and the pet dog, and a second position sensor for sensing the size and position of the pet dog, and the digital controller outputs control signals to the actuator of the washer, the normal and reverse rotation motor and a component controlling motor of the supporting base.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, the cleaning liquid/air supplier may include a cleaning liquid tank in which the cleaning liquid, hot water and cold water are mixed, a combined sensor for sensing the temperature and mixture ratio of the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning liquid tank, an analog-to-digital converter and signal amplifier for converting the analog signal sensed by the combined sensor into a digital signal, a digital controller for performing an operation with respect to the signal supplied from the analog-to-digital converter and signal amplifier and outputting a control signal, a digital-to-analog converter for converting the control signal of the digital controller into an analog signal, a control valve unit responsible for controlling the supply of the cleaning liquid, hot water and cold water by the control signal of the digital controller, and a hydraulic cylinder and an air pump which are actuated by the digital controller and through which the cleaning liquid and air are supplied to the washer.
To accomplish the second object of the present invention, there is provided a method for controlling a pet dog washing apparatus including controlling the position of a pet dog to be washed, pre-washing the pet dog by spraying water to the pet dog while controlling the position of a washer to be closer to the pet dog, washing the pet dog by supplying a cleaning liquid from a cleaning liquid/air supplier and actuating the washer to rotate in normal and reverse directions, rinsing the pet dog by actuating the washer while supplying only water used for rinsing from the cleaning liquid/air supplier, and drying the pet dog by supplying only air from the cleaning liquid/air supplier.
Preferably, the controlling method according to the present invention may further include applying perfume to the pet dog with the cleaning liquid/air supplier and the washer turned off. Also, the controlling method may further include performing a massaging operation on the pet dog by actuating only the washer with the cleaning liquid/air supplier turned off.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the washer is scanned back and forth with respect to the pet dog.